Chapter 266 Final Preparations for the Fortress
The electronic clock in the underground bunker jumped to four in the morning. Su Wanqing rubbed the back of her sore neck. The holographic projection of the command center was still on.
On the light green defense network coverage map, there are a few scattered yellow spots flashing, which are weak points that have not yet been improved.
"Lu Zhao, the energy barrier coverage in the southwest corner is still a little lacking."
She knocked on the console, and the jade bracelet on her wrist vibrated, emitting a light blue halo.
"The current energy reserves are only 40%." Lu Zhao's fingers flew on the keyboard, "If the energy from non-core areas is evenly distributed, the key areas can be raised to 95%."
Su Wanqing stared at the soybean-sized gap - the location connecting to the ventilation shaft. "Shadow" broke through from a similar area during the last invasion.
She shook her head: "No, we have to be on guard against them coming again."
The console popped up a prompt: Remaining rebate points 2300. Su Wanqing clicked "Consume 500 points to activate auxiliary functions", and the light of the jade bracelet suddenly doubled in brightness, and the entire wall vibrated slightly.
The metal surface was covered with blue lines, like living vines, extending along the corners of the wall to the ceiling.
"System prompt: Anchor resonance detected, authority increased by 23%."
Lu Zhao read out the words on the screen, and paused as he pushed up his glasses. "It's related to the five people Xiao Ling mentioned."
Lin Che was squatting in the corner debugging the water purification device when he suddenly looked up.
The blue lines on the back of his neck felt slightly hot, and he could clearly feel Xiao Ling's position in the east laboratory - she was labeling a sample of silver liquid, moving so gently as if she was afraid of breaking glass.
Xiao Ran brought in the last box of compressed biscuits from the supply warehouse, with sweat on his forehead.
Just as he put down the box, he heard Lin Che say, "Brother Xiao, is the gold spot on your wrist jumping?"
Xiao Ran looked down and saw that there was indeed a faintly glowing gold spot on the inside of his wrist. Together with Su Wanqing's jade bracelet, Xiao Ling's silver bracelet, the blue light on Lu Zhao's glasses leg, and the gold spot on his own arm, the colors formed a rainbow.
"When I activated the auxiliary function just now, my temples were throbbing." Lu Zhao touched his forehead, "Now, I can feel your location."
Xiao Ling poked her head out of the laboratory, still holding a test tube in her hand: "Sister Wanqing is in the command center, Brother Xiao Ran is at the entrance of the material warehouse, Brother Lin Che is in the water purification area, and Brother Lu Zhao is at the control console."
She tilted her head. "It's like... having a map in your mind."
Su Wanqing's jade bracelet was still hot. She pressed her wrist and said, "It seems that Lu Zhao's speculation is correct. The connection between the five of us can open the system permissions. We need to find time to practice the synchronization rate."
Just as he finished speaking, Lin Che's tactical headset suddenly rang. He picked it up and heard Doctor Zhang's rapid breathing: "Xiao Lin? This is Doctor Zhang."
Lin Che pressed the earphones into her ears: "Doctor Zhang, what's wrong?"
"The hospital can't hold on any longer." Doctor Zhang's voice trembled. "Yesterday there were only sporadic cases, but today the entire respiratory department is full. Black lines are running from the wrists to the neck. One old man scratched a nurse and his nails turned black."
The sound of shuffling papers could be heard over the comms. "I secretly took a video and sent it to your terminal."
Lin Che clicked on it. In the video, a man in hospital gown was banging his head against the wall. The black lines on his neck seemed alive and were drilling into his eyes.
"The military took over the quarantine area this morning." Doctor Zhang lowered his voice, "The nurse said they used a sealed car to transport people, and the direction they were going was not the ordinary hospital.
What’s even more bizarre is that there was an old lady who was unconscious, but as soon as the car drove away she suddenly sat up and smiled at us. She didn’t look like a living person.”
Lin Che forwarded the video to the public channel. Su Wanqing came over to watch it, frowning: "Doctor Zhang, are you safe over there?"
"I'm fine for now." Doctor Zhang paused, "But I want to go with you. But there are more than 20 nurses who are not infected, and three children who just finished surgery."
Su Wanqing glanced at Xiao Ran and said, "Xiao Ran, take your camouflage equipment to the hospital. Bring back the medical equipment and vaccines that Doctor Zhang mentioned, and see if you can take those nurses and children with you."
Xiao Ran took off his tactical gloves and stuffed them into his pocket: "Is there a blockade around the hospital?"
"Lu Zhao hacked a military pass, you can use that." Su Wanqing pointed to the console, "But remember, if you encounter an inspection, don't force it."
Two hours later, Xiao Ran squatted beside a trash can in the back alley of the hospital. He was wearing a washed-out blue work suit, with a badge on his chest that read "Wang Jianguo, Logistics Department"—Lu Zhaohei's pass. The photo was his, but the name was made up.
Two soldiers were standing at the entrance of the alley, both wearing chemical masks and holding their rifles on their shoulders.
Xiao Ran touched the jammer in his pocket and was about to move when one of the soldiers shouted, "ID."
He handed over his work badge, the soldier scanned it with an instrument, and the green light came on.
"Go in and don't wander around." The soldier returned his ID card to him, his mask covered with white mist.
In the hospital lobby, half of the benches that were usually filled with family members accompanying patients were empty, and the rest of the people were huddled in the corner, covering their mouths and noses with scarves.
Xiao Ran walked towards the stairs. When passing the nurses' station, he heard two nurses whispering, "I heard that all the patients in the isolation area were sent out of the city. Nurse Li went to help and came back vomiting."
"What are you vomiting?"
"She said that one of the patients' hands turned into octopus tentacles."
Xiao Ran's neck tightened. He turned into the storage room and saw Dr. Zhang squatting on the floor stuffing vaccines into cartons. "You came just in time. These are antiviral serums and children's antipyretic medicines."
"Where is the child?" Xiao Ran picked up the box.
"It's on the second floor in the pediatric department. I'll have someone watching." Doctor Zhang locked the door. "But the military has set up a guard at the elevator entrance. We have to use the fire escape."
The window of the fire escape was not closed, and wind blew in, making Dr. Zhang's white coat rustle.
Xiao Ran followed him downstairs and suddenly heard footsteps coming from downstairs.
He stuffed the box into Dr. Zhang's arms and slipped around the corner of the stairs.
Three soldiers came up from downstairs, the one in front holding a gun: "The surveillance just said someone entered the storage room, check it out."
Xiao Ran took out the jammer and pressed the switch, and the emergency lights in the corridor flashed twice.
While the soldier looked up, he dragged Dr. Zhang into the emergency exit, and the alarm in the stairwell rang.
"Run!" Xiao Ran yelled. The two men rushed down the stairs carrying the boxes, and the soldiers shouted from behind: "Stop!"
After exiting the hospital's back door, Xiao Ran stuffed the box into the truck parked at the entrance of the alley.
Doctor Zhang held onto the car door and gasped, "Thank you. I didn't expect you to come."
"Don't thank me yet." Xiao Ran started the car. In the rearview mirror, the lights of the hospital were still flashing. "When we get back to the fortress, you have to tell me everything you know."
The truck drove out two streets, and Xiao Ran heard Su Wanqing's voice in his earphones: "The military blockade has been advanced. Now the only way out of the city is the North Ring Road."
"Got it." Xiao Ran stepped on the accelerator, and the tires left scorch marks on the ground.
He glanced at Dr. Zhang in the passenger seat, who was staring at the street scene receding outside the window with a blank look in his eyes.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Ran asked.
"I've been a doctor for ten years. I've seen SARS and bird flu." Doctor Zhang touched the USB flash drive in his pocket. "But this time is different."
The truck turned onto the North Ring Road and the military's camouflage tents could be seen in the distance.
Xiao Ran slowed down the car, and the gold spot on his wrist began to heat up again - it seemed as if there was a string pulling him and Xiao Ling, Lin Che, and the others in the fortress gently underground.
There was a slight hum coming from the ventilation ducts of the underground fortress. Su Wanqing stood in front of the control console in the command center, her fingertips moving across the holographic screen.
The green spots of light from the defense network finally connected together, covering all key areas.
She turned and looked at the four people behind her: "The basic defense is stable. We have to go check out the sealed cabin that Xiaoling mentioned today."
Lin Che tightened the last screw of the water purifier that had just been adjusted and stood up: "I'll follow."
Xiao Ran came in from the material warehouse carrying an empty box. Hearing this, he put the box in the corner and said, "Count me in."
Lu Zhao pushed up his glasses, and the blue light from the screen flickered on his lenses: "The system log mentioned that there is an unresolved area on the third underground floor. It's a good time to go and confirm it."
Xiao Ling ran out of the laboratory clutching a test tube, with silver liquid still on the ends of her hair: "Sister Wanqing, I'll lead the way!"
The five people walked down the spiral staircase. The lighting on the third underground floor was dimmer than that on the upper floors, and the metal walls glowed with a cold light.
Xiao Ling stopped at the corner and put her hand on a seemingly ordinary wall: "It's here."
As soon as her fingertips touched the metal, the silver bracelet on her wrist suddenly lit up, and silver lines spread along the wall like a living vine.
Su Wanqing took out the terminal and called up the system interface. As soon as the screen lit up, a prompt box popped up: "Anchor resonance body detected, five people need to synchronize to open the special area."
She turned to look at the others. The gold spots on Xiao Ran's wrist were glowing, the blue lines on the back of Lin Che's neck were slightly hot, the blue light from Lu Zhao's glasses legs and Xiao Ling's silver bracelet complemented each other, and the jade bracelet on her wrist was also heating up.
"Put your hand there." Su Wanqing placed her palm next to Xiaoling.
Lin Che, Xiao Ran, and Lu Zhao followed suit, with five pairs of palms forming a semicircle on the metal wall.
The wall suddenly shook, and the metal block flowed like melted wax, revealing the spherical device inside.
The surface of the device is covered with lines, and the color of each line corresponds to the mark of five people.
"System prompt: Synchronization rate 37%." Lu Zhao's terminal sounded a prompt, "A closer resonance is needed."
Xiaoling closed her eyes and the silver liquid in her body began to flow.
The liquid flowed through her veins to her fingertips, drawing silver symbols on the metal surface.
The blue lines on the back of Lin Che's neck spread to his arms. He could feel the water pipes on the third floor underground vibrating, and the water flow gathered into thin streams, forming blue-green water marks on the device.
The golden spots on Xiao Ran's face were blindingly bright. He gritted his teeth, and the power in his body seeped into the device along his palm like a ignited fire, burning out golden lines.
Lu Zhao's glasses suddenly emitted blue light, and data streams poured out from the lenses, weaving into a light blue grid on the surface of the device.
Su Wanqing's jade bracelet emitted a strong light, and she could clearly feel the pulse of the system - those once vague instructions now became unusually clear.
"Synchronization rate 62%." Lu Zhao's voice trembled a little, "The device is responding."
The spherical device cracked with a "click", revealing the space inside.
There were five objects suspended in the center, each emitting light corresponding to the marks of the five people: a blue watch, blue-green gloves, a red neck ring, special glasses, and a silver bracelet.
Su Wanqing reached out to take the watch, and as her fingertips touched the dial, the jade bracelet suddenly vibrated.
The watch surface showed the same pattern as the jade bracelet, and it gently fell into her palm: "Is this... able to resonate with the system?"
Lin Che put on the gloves, and the blue lines on the back of his hands immediately crawled into the gloves through the gaps between his fingers.
He clenched his palm towards the air, and a drop of water condensed in his palm: "I can get water from the air."
Xiao Ran put the collar around his neck, and the red light spread along his collarbone.
He tried to mobilize the power in his body. This time, there was no burning sensation. Instead, it was like holding a tamed fire. "It's not so easy to lose control now."
As soon as Lu Zhao put on his glasses, a holographic interface popped up in front of him. He blinked, and the interface automatically switched to a defense network diagram: "The data processing speed is at least three times faster."
As soon as Xiaoling put the bracelet on her wrist, the silver liquid in her body suddenly rushed to her arm.
The liquid formed a shield in front of her, and then instantly turned into spikes: "I can control this silver liquid!"
The system prompt sounded again: "Primary equipment activation completed, the synchronization rate needs to be increased to 80% before it can be fully unlocked."
The spherical device slowly closed, but the door of the cabin remained open, revealing several rows of data streams on the wall inside.
Lu Zhao leaned closer to the data stream and traced his fingertips in the air: "This is the document of the Weaver Project."
He called up a text, "Phase one biological contamination, stage two temporal anomaly, stage three direct invasion. We are now at the end of stage one, stage two is about to begin."
"Time anomaly?" Xiao Ran frowned. "Does the time rift we encountered before count?"
"That's the prelude." Lu Zhao pulled up a schematic diagram. "In the second stage, there will be a large-scale distortion of time and space, and the boundary between reality and other time and space will become blurred."
Su Wanqing touched the watch, the lines on it still resonating with the jade bracelet: "These equipment should be used for response."
"Report!" Jiang Hui's voice came from the communicator, "Xiao Ran's military insider has news that there is movement over there from General Li's side."
Xiao Ran picked up the communicator: "Speak."
"General Li just received an order from his superiors that the infection is spreading too fast and we are now in orange alert."
Jiang Hui's voice was a little muffled. "The superior told him to evacuate the people on the list first, and keep the others in the quarantine area. If it reaches a red alert, he has the right to activate the purification protocol."
Su Wanqing tapped her fingers on her watch: "What is the purification protocol?"
"Use extreme means to clear the area, including civilians." Xiao Ran put down the communicator. "The insider said that General Li was staring at the heavy weapons outside the window with an unpleasant expression."
Lin Che clenched her gloves tightly, and the water droplets condensed into small icicles in her palms: "The military wants to sacrifice the entire city?"
"We have to speed up." Su Wanqing turned and looked at the data stream in the cabin. "The second phase of the Ark Project will be launched today. Xiao Ran and Doctor Zhang will be responsible for building the safe point, Lin Che and Xiao Ling will monitor the Weaver Base, and Lu Zhao will improve the defense."
She paused and said, "If we can save one, it's one."
Xiaoling's silver liquid shield suddenly flashed, and she looked down at the bracelet: "Sister Wanqing, the silver liquid is moving, as if responding to something."
Lu Zhao pushed his glasses, and new data popped up on the interface: "The energy fluctuations of the Weaver Base have increased again."
Su Wanqing touched the jade bracelet, and the temperature was higher than before: "It seems that the second stage is faster than expected."
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